Security threats to mobile phones must be addressed

Security threats to mobile phone users are increasing and need to be addressed more effectively.

Europeans are experiencing a 21.3% increase of unwanted text messages year on year, according to a study by comScore M:Metrics in the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany.

This shows there is still some improvement needed despite some mobile operators leading the way in deploying anti-spam products, the study found.

With some spam messages containing mobile worms and viruses, this statistic is cause for concern, said the study conducted on behalf of mobile infrastructure firm Airwide Solutions.

Alistair Hill, analyst at comScore M:Metrics, said the study proves that mobile security has to be taken more seriously.

"It is clear that we rely on our mobile phones to carry out a large percentage of our daily tasks. Ensuring we are protected from security risks is paramount," he said.

The problem is expected to get worse as more people use their mobile phones to access financial information.

Around 5.6 million Europeans access financial information and carry out transactions from their mobile phones, which represents a jump of 23.6% in the past year.

Jay Seaton, chief marketing officer at Airwide Solutions, said with significant increases in the use of mobiles phones both for personal and corporate use, mobile subscribers and corporate organisations will need guarantees that their phones and data are secured.